TOLEDO, Ohio - Junior forward A'Jah Davis (DeKalb, Ill./Montverde Academy [Fla.]) of the Northern Illinois University women's basketball team scored a career-high 30 points Wednesday night, but it was a late second quarter run that powered the Toledo Rockets to a 74-56 win at Savage Arena.

Davis' previous career-high was 26 points, set this season at DePaul on Dec. 16. The junior also had her 22nd double-double of the season with a game-high 10 rebounds. It was her 11th straight double-double and her seventh this season of at least 20 points and 10 rebounds.

"A'Jah took good shots and took advantage of Toledo not double-teaming her a lot," said head coach Lisa Carlsen. "Defensively is where we struggled, especially at the end of the first half and Toledo got out to a big lead. We talk about one game at a time and this is one that we need to get over and get past and get ready for a Central Michigan team on Saturday that has a ton of history."

Toledo (24-4, 18-1 MAC) opened game on a 9-2 run over the first 2:39, getting six points from Jessica Cook. A'Jah Davis scored NIU's first five points, putting in a layup at the 6:27 mark to make the score 12-5. The Huskies trailed 16-5 when a Sidney McCrea three-pointer started a 10-0 Huskies run, getting NIU within one at 16:15 with 1:22 left in the quarter. Davis scored the last five points of the run. Toledo went back up six 21-15 with 0:31 left on a Sophia Wiard three and Quinesha Lockett layup. Davis scored the final two of her 12 first quarter points on a layup with four seconds left, making the score 21-17 going into the second.

NIU (13-14, 10-8 MAC) made five of its first eight shots from the field to start the second quarter. The Huskies and Rockets traded baskets early, with a Davis layup getting NIU within three 27-24 with 7:05 to play until halftime. After a Khera Goss layup put the Rockets up five, Davis and Janae Poisson made back-to-back baskets to get NIU within one at 29-28 with 4:37 left in the quarter. That would be the Huskies' last field goal of the first half. Toledo closed the half on a 20-0 run, with eight points from Nan Garcia and four from Sammi Mikonowicz, to take a 49-28 lead at halftime.

The Huskies shot 56 percent from the field in the third quarter, but were not able to make a dent in Toledo's lead. Davis scored six points in the period to give her 24 for the game as the Rockets took a 62-38 lead into the fourth. The junior eclipsed her career-high in points with 6:29 to go in the game, putting points 27 and 28 on the board with a layup at the 6:29 mark. She then reached 30 points with 5:09 to go, starting an 8-2 run to end the game and make the final score 74-56.

NIU finished the game shooting 45.5 percent from the field, with Toledo shooting 48.4 percent. The Rockets held NIU to 3-for-11 from the three-point line and outrebounded the Huskies 36-29. Cook and Lockett each led Toledo in scoring with 14 points.

The Huskies wrap up the regular season at the NIU Convocation Center on Saturday, March 5 against Central Michigan at 1 p.m. for Senior Day. Following Saturday's game NIU will honor seniors Nia Ahart, Mikayla Brandon, Paulina Castro and Errin Hodges. Tickets can be purchased online at NIUHuskies.com/MyHuskies or by calling the NIU Athletics Ticket Office at 815-753-PACK (7225).
 
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